USA Racquetball expands instructor certification to grow the sport
A USA Racquetball instructor candidate has to pass a test, complete SafeSport training, clear a $29 background check, and finish CPR training before teaching beginners. The certification program turns casual players into qualified coaches who can seed local clubs, schools, and junior programs.
A certification path built for the front line of growth
The federation has made the pathway unusually concrete. The checklist includes membership, the instructor manual and rules, the instructor test, an instructional video, SafeSport training, a background check, and CPR training. The background check costs $29 and remains valid for two years, giving the process a level of standardization many club sports never formalize.
That structure is aimed at health clubs, fitness centers, schools, and universities, where the first contact with the sport often happens in a class, a clinic, or a pickup session. Certified instructors can use secondary insurance coverage under the organization’s program, an added layer that matters when clubs weigh whether to put racquetball in front of beginners.
- Become a USA Racquetball member.
- Study the instructor manual and rules.
- Pass the instructor test.
- Watch the instructional video.
- Complete SafeSport training.
- Finish the background check.
- Complete CPR training.
The sequence creates a repeatable onboarding system that lets a club or school put the same teaching standard in the hands of different instructors, whether the setting is a fitness center, a university rec program, or a youth clinic.
Why the teaching job matters as much as the swing
Racquetball is easy to misunderstand from the outside. It is a closed-court sport in which players take turns serving and returning the ball, trying to keep the rally alive until the opponent cannot make a legal return. That means a coach is not only teaching mechanics. The coach is also teaching how the court works, how rebounds change the geometry of every shot, how to move safely in tight space, and how to understand the rules well enough to build a rally instead of just chasing the ball.
The certification resources are built around instruction, not just competition. The certification program is designed to develop instructors who can teach group clinics as well as individual players. All instructor information has been consolidated in one place and the instructor list updated, making it easier for clubs and prospective teachers to find a clear entry point.
In May 2024, USA Racquetball added a Growing the Sport Committee, and one of the committee’s first tasks was increasing the number of certified instructors around the country. More widely distributed instructors can introduce more people to racquetball and keep players on local fitness-club courts instead of letting the sport disappear after one try. Jonathan Greenberg is the contact named on that update.
Safety, access, and a more professional coaching model
The certification program is also tied to a broader safety framework. USA Racquetball’s mandatory background-check policy took effect on April 1, 2021, to strengthen athlete safety and align with U.S. Center for SafeSport and United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee requirements. SafeSport training is designed to help participants recognize, prevent, and respond to abuse and misconduct, and the courses are meant for coaches, athletes, parents, and other sport participants.
Clubs recruiting beginners, working with minors, and building repeat attendance need more than a good hitting drill. They need documented safety steps, basic emergency training, and a clear set of rules that coaches can enforce the same way every time.
The resource library includes the rules of racquetball, an in-depth manual, the instructional video, waivers for students and parents, a guide for starting a junior program at a club, a high-school program manual, and newsletters with training, nutrition, and coaching tips for different levels.
Junior play is where the pipeline becomes visible
At the 2024 USA Racquetball National Junior Festival & Championships in Pleasanton, California, 139 players competed across 69 divisions. The field included 86 boys and 53 girls ages 6 to 22 representing 17 states. Missouri sent 32 players, up from 19 the year before.
Forty entrants competed in two divisions and 86 in three, which meant young players were getting repeated match reps instead of one-and-done exits. The event was also intended to build team spirit ahead of the next USA Racquetball National High School Championships, tying junior events to a longer developmental ladder.
USA Racquetball’s 2024 Junior Championships in Pleasanton, held June 26-30, served as the Team Qualifier for the 2024-25 U.S. National Junior Racquetball Team. Later, 36 athletes from nine states made up Junior Team USA for that cycle. In 2025, the Junior National Championships again served as the qualifier, this time for the 2025-26 junior team, with gold-division finalists in singles and winners in doubles earning places on the squad.
A sport that has always depended on people teaching people
Racquetball has long evolved through equipment changes, rule changes, and teaching. Joe Sobek, commonly referred to as the Father of Racquetball, developed early equipment ideas during the Korean War, when he asked for 25 racquets to be made and later helped inspire the first racquetball ball. The game then moved through a rapid equipment timeline: aluminum alloy frames in 1971, fiberglass in 1972, graphite in 1979, and oversize frames in 1984.
The first racquetball magazine was published in November 1972, and National Racquetball followed in September 1973.
USA Racquetball is recognized by the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee as the national governing body for racquetball in the United States, and seeks to maintain a formal communication link to more than 500,000 recreational players.